Istanbul, A Studylogue

 Bismillah

It's the last week of September 2019 and I am sitting at the kitchen table next to the window of our apartment in Esenyurt, Istanbul. It's early into Fall and the temperature already makes us wear multi-layer clothing and socks.

It's already our third week into the Exchange Program with Fatih Sultan Mehmet Vakif University in Halic and we've been through so much - good, exciting, surprising memories. 

Istanbul has been great, there's no doubt that it's a pleasant city to live in. There has been hardly any place I  wouldn't consider beautiful and pleasant, except that the smoking culture is admittedly very challenging to bear with. I have been intending to update my life here weekly but has by far only managed to make simple notes in my physical and online diary, and those are the ones that I never really share with anyone.

Have I mentioned about the seas? I've always been scared of the ocean world- mysterious, deep, dark and unpredictable, but coming to  Istanbul, I am presented with turquoise blue oceans that are full of seagulls and shaded by fluffy clouds and shone upon by the radiant sun, and ships that float around, and the moss-green mountains as its background, and the variety of beautiful mosques around, and the classical looking buildings and towers by its sides, how can one not admire it? That's only just the beginning. Upon my first visit to  Sutluce, it was already decided that I didn't want to go back to Malaysia, how unpatriotic of me! Hehe, I know that's not possible, at least not for now.

This post may be an exaggeration of my admiration to the picturesque beauty of this country, but I am by no means kidding. In shaa Allah, in the attempt to cherish and remember every moment of my short stay in Istanbul, I'll try to make time to write about the past and coming weeks consistently. 

Above all, I'm hoping that my stay here will be worthwhile and that I will eventually learn something more than just the curriculum. Rather than just the law, I plan to learn more about the history of Turkey, the people, and culture, the inter-racial interaction, and to have a deeper understanding of my own self. Perhaps all the gazing and observation to the windows of the apartment, and the Metrobus, and the trams, and the skies will help. 

I have always been wondering what life on the other parts of the world is like, and now that I am actually living in it, it all feels surreal. I hope that throughout these 5 months, I won't ever feel already too accustomed to it so every day feels like a new adventure. May Allah guide me towards making this study trip a blessed and a fruitful one, aameen. 

p/s: I brought some postcards from a special souvenir shop in Eminonu and have been thinking of mailing them to family and friends. Will do, in shaa Allah.

Also p/s: I have been thinking a lot about my value and skill sets as a law reader, and have always been feeling left behind in many ways. I know many people wouldn't agree with this because of the way they see me, but that's how I feel. I'm hoping to find a way to improve, if not to be better than anyone else, to be better than my old self. Hope I can do this!